William fishley serjeant



WILLIAM FISHLEY SERJEANT, 0F ST. LOUIS, MISSOURI.l

Letters Patent No. 79,016, dated June 16, A1868;k antedated June 4, 1868.

IMPROVED RAILROAD-RAIL TIE.

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TO ALL WHOM IT MAY CON CERN:

Be it known that I, WILLIAM FIsHLEY Snam/livr, of St. Louis, in the county of St. Louis, and State o 4Missouri, have invented a new and improved Method of Securing Down and Tying Together RailroadRails;

and I do hereby declare thatthe following is a full, clear, and exact description thereof, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, making part of this specification, in which- Figure 1 is a plan view of a portion of a railroad-track, showing my improved method of securing down and tying together the rails thereof.

Figure 2 is a side view of one side ot' the track.

Figure 3 is a cross-section of the track. l

Similar letters of reference indicate corresponding parts in the several gures. v

This invention relates to a new and improved method of securing down railroad-rails, whereby spikes, and other fastenings which are liable to become loose, are dispensed with, and the improved fastenings made to serve the several purposes of holding the rails down upon their wooden sleepers or cross-ties, preventing lateral displacement of the rails, and tying the rails .of both sides of the track together in such manner as to prevent,

spreading or contraction thereof, all as will be hereinafter explained.

To enable others skilled in the art to understand my invention, I will describe one practical mode of carrying it into effect.

In the accompanying drawings, I have represented my invention applied to the well-known T-shaped rails; but it will be evident, from the following description, that, without changing the principle ot' the invention, it is applicable to railroads employing rails of other shapes. p

The bed of the track may be made up of transverse ties, 13 B, arranged at suitable distances apart, and held down in the usual well-known manner. Upon these cross-ties I secure the rails by means of metal tie-bars or auxiliary ties, O C, which I prefer to make of the iish-belly form, shown `in the drawings, iig. 3, as ai'ording the greatest strength against vertical strain. The ends of these ties C terminate in hooks or jaws, a a, which are adapted for receiving th'e base danges of the rails, and securing these rails firmly to the ties C.

The ties C are all made of an equal length, and slipped upon the rail-sections previously to securing these sections down in place, which is done by means of bolts, c b, passed through the crossties B B. It will be seen that the metallic holdingedown ties C serve as a most perfect means of gauging the rails in the act of laying them down, and, at the same time, preventing lateral spreading or contraction o'f the track.

The cross-beams B B do not, ilrreality, serve the purpose of ties, as they are commonly employed, for i they afford a means of securing in place the bars C, which serve as the tics; `and they also serve, in conjunction with these ties C, as supports for the rails.

I do not conne myself to the exact shape ofthe ties 0,1101' to the shape 'of the jaws which gripe or receive the bases of the rails, -as other forms may be adopted which may be made to answer the same end.

If desirable,.bolt or other fastenings may be applied very near the extremities of thcties C, as shown at c c in figs. 1 and 3; but, where the'ties C possess sufficient strength and stiti'ness in themselves, two or three fastenings will answer every purpose.

I am aware that it is well known, in the construction of railroads, to employ tie-rods, having griping-jaws on their extremities, for tying together the movable-switch sections oi the'traclr. In such instances, the tierods do not hold the rail-sections down upon the bed of the track.

I have above described my improved ties as applied to cross-beams, and secured thereto; but, if desirable,

I the ends of the ties may be recessed into longitudinal sleepers, and secured to them as well as to cross-beams between said sleepers.

I am aware that metal cross-ties have been employed with vertical recesses in their upper surfaces, near their. ends, for receiving the base portions of rails, and preventing lateral movement ofthe rails upon their ties I am also aware that railroad-chairs have been connected together by cross-ties or tie-bars.

I am also @were that it is very common to employ cross-ties for movable-switch rails, which consist oijaws, embracing the b'ase `portions of the rails, connected together by tie-rods.

I do not, therefore, claim broadly a metal cross-tie, nor such as are shown in the' Letters Patent of J. Winkley, October 23, 1866, John Elgar, March 12, 1845, and Eastman, September 3, 1867.

Having described my invention, what'I claimas new, and desire to secure by LettersP-atent, is-

1. The employment of a holding-down cross-tie, which is construct-ed .with jaws uponits ends, which will embrace the rails, when said tie is secured to, or en means'substantially as described.

2. A metallic eross-tie, constructed transverse perfom'tions through it, as herein described and shown.

' yWILLIAM FISHLEY SERJJLM'T.v

Witnesses WM. Boom, JAMES CUMMISKEY.

1opted for being secured to', the wooden bed of the track, by

of one piece of metal, with jaws, a a, upon its extremities, and with 

